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First Amendment Doesn't Protect Online Reviews of Lawyer

Keep up with the latest developments and legal issues in the telecommunications and emerging technology sectors, with exclusive access to a comprehensive collection of telecommunications law news,...

By Alexis Kramer

Jan. 6 — Online
reviews alleging that an attorney falsified a contract and
misrepresented her fees to a client weren't protected as free
speech, the Florida District Court of Appeal for the Fourth
District held Jan. 6 (Blake v. Ann-Marie
Giustibelli, P.A., Fla. Dist. Ct. App., No. 4D14-3231,
1/6/16).

Chief Judge Cory J. Ciklin rejected the client's
argument that the online reviews weren't actionable under the First
Amendment because they constituted statements of opinion.

“These are factual allegations, and the evidence
showed they were false,” the court said.

Attorney Ann-Marie Giustibelli represented Copia
Blake in a divorce proceeding. After a breakdown in their
attorney-client relationship, Blake posted allegedly defamatory
online reviews about Giustibelli. Giustibelli brought a libel
claim, in which the trial court awarded her damages. Blake
appealed.

The court said Blake admitted at trial that
Giustibelli didn't charge four times more than what was quoted in
the contract, despite her online reviews alleging that she was
overcharged by this amount.

Blake also argued “libel per se” no longer exists as
a legal concept after Gertz v. Robert Welch
Inc., 418 U.S. 323 (1974), in which the U.S. Supreme Court
ruled that fault and proof of damages must be established in libel
cases involving media defendants.

Here, the court distinguished Gertz because this case involves a private
party, not a media defendant. The doctrine of libel per se still
exists in Florida, the court said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alexis Kramer
in Washington at akramer@bna.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Thomas O'Toole at totoole@bna.com

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